Heroes The Breakaway Chapter 1-Sweet Home Chicago

Dollonovich was stuffing an egg Mcmuffin in his mouth as his phone vibrated at his belt, 'buzzzz', 'buzzzz' it shook at his hip like an angry beehive.

"This is Markus."

"Markus, we've got a lead on your 'Russia' list, some people took some cellphone photos of some metas fighting with a giant robot on the south side this evening. There were three of them, John MacManus for sure, an unknown younger man with an Irish accent and last but not least Fyedka Romanov. We are not 100% on the other two yet but MacManus is for sure, we are running the photos through as we speak, our guys will have the identities of the others at any time. Early Intel is that the third guy is most likely Romanov, this guy was on your hot list wasn't he?"

"Yeah, he's on the short list, Russian Intelligence has made some deal with our government to swap metas, we give them some of theirs and they ship a couple of our bad apples back stateside. Thing is that some of the ones they want aren't locked up, there are just walking around."

"That's messed up."

"Yeah, like the U.S. government has the time and money to hunt down a handful of alleged Russian metas, most of which have committed no serious crimes."

"I think it's just busy work...anyway I'm supposed to turn any intel over to Kurtz, he's the man in charge of this debacle. I heard he is using a meta criminal to help him find these poor suckers. She is helping to hunt them down in exchange for some overlooking of her past crimes and a chance to stay here in the U.S. She thinks that they will let her go if she helps us, what a sap."

"What world is she living in? Who is this meta anyway?"

"It's Valyeev, Kristina Valyeev."

"Really? That's some serious shit, she is a very dangerous woman..she's a killer. I can't believe we are dealing with her."

"We'll use her and toss her back into a deep, dark hole."

"Man, I hope so!"

Thanks for the heads up, send the photos back to the office with anything else you have and I'll get them to Kurtz."

"Will do Markus."

Markus slipped his phone back to it's small holster and finished his cold breakfast sandwich. It was becoming a strange world when the F.B.I. and RAID would use convicted meta criminals to hunt wanted ones. The agent made haste back to his office to look over the cellphone photos and read the report. The sooner he helped Kurtz gather up these Russian illegals the better, Dollonovich was not happy to be helping in the hunting of his own people.

As the three meta's made their way through the shadows, Jasper was kicking himself for not grabbing that robot's head but there was no going back, not unless he wanted to tangle with the cops. As they moved behind a tall wooden fence toward his apartment block the Irishman whispered to John, "Hey, Mac. Did ya get a good look of that robot's parts? It looked no different than a patchwork quilt and most'a the pieces seemed to be military. Have ya any idea where the closest scrap yard be? Perhaps a military salvage yard?"

Jasper figured that thing hadn't come very far before it decided to use the apartment block as a punching bag. They could also easily trace it's heavy steps back to its origins but he figured the cops would probably do the same and they didn't need to be crossing their paths.

"If'n ya need you're both welcome to come up. I'm jus' gonna grab a few essentials. No tellin' the next time we may hit a store, eh?" Joy Buzzer informed his companions.

JB was right, the machine seemed to be constructed of basic military grade armor and steel, in fact it's body seemed hastily constructed and unfinished. It's head was another story, it did not seem to go along with it's rather industrial look. The head was the key, those gleaming red eyes, they almost seemed intelligent.

John went with JB and Fyedka back to the Irishman's apartment, the cops would be looking for witnesses and clues and it was best that they get off the street for now. John thought about the news story, the one about the department of defense items that were stolen in a break in just a day before. Somebody had them a new toy and had chosen this working class neighborhood to test run it.

"Let's gather up our gear and get the hell outta here." John said seconding Jasper's plan.

Kristina walked several paces behind the agents, they were spread out all around the dilapidated warehouse. They were taking pictures, writing notes and gathering evidence. Kristina could almost sense the fading meta presence here, she could almost taste it. Kristina's subtle power extended from her and drifted around the room, some of the F.B.I. and plainclothes RAID agents began to feel slightly nauseous.

The agent that was assigned as her 'handler' approached her.
"They were here Kristina, three of them, it seems they had a small fire and warmed up some food. They did not stay long..and we're fairly certain that they have a car." The agent watched the woman with the blood red dyed hair for a response. She pulled her power from the room around her, releasing the unknowing agents from her influence.

"Take me to where the robot was seen..." She replied and she and her 'handler' got into a car and drove to the run down neighborhood where the machine had damaged the tenement building.

Disorderly as the apartment was one item was meticulously organized and that was Joy Buzzer's travel pack which he always had on hand just in case... well this case being big freaking robot terrorizing his neighborhood. Snatching up the leather backpack, he was in and out of his apartment in a matter of moments. All that he had with any sentimental value was in his arms and the Irishman didn't give anything else in the apartment a second look; it could all be replaced.

"Take what ya be needin' gent's. It's all up for grabs now." Said Jasper as they hastily departed but before he left, the Irishman popped off the light switch cover off using a screwdriver on his key chain. Inside was a small circuit board that the mechanic would admire.

"This bloke owed me a few bucks." Jasper explained as he entered a code on a tiny pad with his screwdriver, "Turns out he was broke, but the guy was a bit of a genius, so I had 'em work of the debt by installing this."

As he closed up the light switch cover and they made their way down to the garage, Jasper explained the last time he had to vacate his home knowledge of who was pursuing would have been invaluable. Basically hidden all over the apartment were a series of cameras and bugs that would record and relay information to a secure location on the web that he could access. Then by punching a code into his iPhone he could activate a self-destruct sequence that would pretty much disintegrate all of the devices preventing any chance of a specialist using the hardware to trace him.

"The guy said that the signal bounced around so many servers that it was virtually impossible for anyone to track it." Jasper finished as they entered the garage and headed for John's stolen Caddy.

In the passenger seat, Jasper was already surfing the net and checking out the local junk yards. "Well, John,"he said, "seems there's a junk yard that features World War II wrecks only a few blocks away, it's called 'Sergeant's Scrap Yard'." He held the iPhone in front of the steering wheel so that John could see the address.

"We'd better move. I don't think it'll take too long for the coppers to put two and two together after they take a look at the heap o' junk we left behind."

John entered the litter strewn garage area on the ground floor of Jasper's building. The Cadillac was sitting just as the heroes had left it. John smiled as walked to the machine, to John there were few things in this world better than an old American made classic.

John started up the old car and rubbed the steering wheel with care.
"Which way is this junk yard with military hardware in it?"

John took a second to locate another cigar and stuck it in his mouth as he put the pedal down and the long white machine roared out of the parking area.

McManus did not like the idea of moving out in the open with the cops just a few blocks over, but Jasper's theory about the robo originating from the industrial scrap yard made sense, If the robo was an intelligent machine that was bent on mayhem but programmed for survival then the scrap yard with it's rusting tanks and jeeps and such would be a fine place to procure a suit of bullet proof armor.

John thought about the machine and it's tough metal hide, it was not merely a covering, the machine was actually made from the military grade steel. John wondered what kind of maniac would create such a machine and turn it loose on a poor, working class neighborhood.

Most of all John wondered what had become of the head, who had snatched it in the darkness? John McManus did like not knowing who the enemy was nor did he enjoy not knowing what their game was.

John turned to Jasper and inquired about the run down scrap yard.

"They got any security posted at this joint? Any night watchman or dogs or anything like that?"

John shook his head as he thought about dogs, how he hated fighting with dogs, a few times RAID had set their highly trained dogs on him and hated every minute of it.

"I hate dogs..." John grunted as he remembered.

The street rat had been quiet since the battle with the robot thing. His mind was spinning with conflicts tangled within fear. He'd already exposed himself in front of everyone but at the same time, he just couldn't sit back and let innocents die or be hurt. Now it was only worse when he considered these two. The had taken him in, shown him kindness despite the risk to themselves. There was no way he could let them go it alone now. As he looked out into the fading light, the shadows almost seemed to call to him. For a moment, he found himself surprised at how they had come to look like home.

"Don't worry about security," said Fyedka finally, his voice quiet and a little hoarse with fatigue. "I'll take care of them and try to give you a clear path." There was a pause in which he sighed quietly, turning his eyes to the his feet. "I should warn you guys," he said, suddenly speaking slower, as though he were pulling the words out from some very deep, hidden place. "Your hanging around me may put you guys in danger. I . . . I think earlier when I . . . used my powers in public like that, in front of all those people, I may have made things a little worse. If . . . If I have to cut and run at some point, just . . . I'm just doing it to protect you. I don't want you guys to think I abandoned you or don't, ya know, appreciate what you've done for me and all."

Slowly, Fyedka raised his head and studied the backs of their heads, the narrow reflections of their brows in the rearview mirror. Despite the maelstrom going on in his mind, his expression was solid, honest, prepared to accept whatever reaction they would have to this, even if it was booting him from the car or a brutally honest commentary about how he'd put all of those other people at risk by trying to protect himself.

Markus Dollonovich was staring at the surprisingly clear cellphone photos of three metas duking it out with a 15 foot tall humanoid robot. Dollonovich nodded at the photos, he could make out McManus clear as day, there was not doubt, the photos clearly revealed his metal hand and over sized mech leg. Markus smiled as he studied the unidentified well dressed meta with the smart looking hat.

"An unregistered Irish one, huh...." He muttered as he studied the prints.

In one photo it looked as if a dark mist was closing in around the robot and the Irishman and John. Fyedkah was not in the photo, but Dollonovich knew of him and knew something about his powers.

"Romanov...it is you." The intel was bittersweet for Markus, what would his father think?, his only son had become a federal agent and now spent his time hunting other Russians and Russian-Americans who for the most part had commited no real criminal acts.

If Dollonovich's father was still alive he would give his son an earful about loyalty and love for one's countrymen.

Markus' thoughts went back to the robot, the photos showed American military insignias and other details that would indicate that the machine's armature was stolen or purchased via the black market. Markus swung over to his computer and ticked on the keyboard, his search returned a few military storage areas on the South side but none had any armored hardware or vehicles. His search returned a news blurb about the D.O.D. facility break in and the theft of undisclosed classified items. According to the story whatever was stolen was small and unimportant. Dollonovich continued to search, his screen filled with a localized map of the neighborhood where the robot was seen damaging the apartment buildings, a bit of intel popped on screen, revealing the military/industrial scrap yard just blocks from the robot's location.

Dollonovich made note of the address as he walked swiftly downstairs to the F.B.I. parking garage and got into his car and drove in the direction of the scrapyard.

Jasper looked back at his iPhone then back to John. "It dun say anything about security, but in this neighborhood a man would be a fool not to 'ave it, so I'd expect the worst, Mack."

When the shady kid in the back seat mentioned he'd take care of any security, Jasper nodded but didn't say anything. Not wanting to give him a hard time he just bit his tongue and looked out the window. Then we gave his spiel about placing them in danger by just being around him, Jasper audibly laughed.

"Aye, thanks for the warning there, 'Shady', but don't ya think you'd a been kicked ta the curb already if we were worried about ya puttin' us in danger? I've been on the run most o' me life and from the sounds of it, John's never stopped, so you just don't worry about us now."

Jasper then turned right around and looked in Fyedka's eyes. "And don't go feedin' me that crap about duckin' out to protect us. If'n ya dun want ta stand your ground then don't, but don't use us as an excuse.", he told him, then flipped forward once more, "But if'n yer in trouble all ya need do is ask for help." the fellow meta mentioned as he glanced out his window.

"There it is Mack." Jasper announced, pointing to the old sign on the side of a chain link fence topped with razor wire, "Sergeant's Scrap Yard, and it looks like this is the place." he said gesturing to the hole in the fence, which looked like it had been torn apart by a speeding vehicle or a giant robot.

Fyedka blinked and his lip curled at the Irishman's response.

Well, Fyedka, he thought to himself, that's what you get for underestimating people. Despite being put in his place, it mostly just made him feel better. As they pulled up to the junkyard and saw at the gaping hole in the fence, Fyedka's eyes automatically began darting around the shadows looking for any sign of movements. The falling sun would only give him more ammunition, all he needed was to hold up the strength to wield it. When he saw nothing, Fyedka tentatively pulled on the handle and cracked the door open. It had become instinct for him to pause and listen before creeping out of a hidey hole but the air was still and silent. After a second, the Russian meta slipped silently through the door and pushed it quietly shut. Moving immediately out of the light and ducking back into the shadows, Fyedka moved toward the fence and paused again at the opening, intently scanning the darkness and keeping his ears pricked.

John drove slowly past the chain link and razor wire fence, there was a sizable hole in the chain link where the robo had passed through. John pulled the car into a dark part of the alleyway and put it in park. Fyedka slipped out of the vehicle, the young Russian was silent as a mouse as he headed for the shadows.

John stepped from the car, it creaked as the beefy mechanic planted his large mech leg onto the asphalt. John could see the deep impressions that the machine had left in the surrounding soil and blacktop, there was no doubt that the robo had come from this scrapyard.

In his typical non stealth style John walked to the hole in the fence and entered the premises. There were many kind of scrap in this yard, a lot of old cars and car parts, some aircraft parts and last but not least a small grid of stripped down military vehicle shells. There were a few lights on some of the out buildings that surrounded the heaps of scrap, but beyond that there was not much light to see by.

"This sure as hell is the place Irish, look at all this beautiful metal in here." John said quietly.

John looked around for Fyedka, he could not see the young man but he felt that the long haired meta was very comfortable in dark places.

"I guess we won't worry about the kid, I got a feeling he's in his element in here." John said cranking his head around in the dark rows of rusting steel and iron.

"Check it out JB, an old 48 Ford pickup, my pop had one like that..." John pointed to the half crushed hulk in front of them, only it's bumper and grill were still recognizable.

"I'll have to take your word on that one, Mack." Said Jasper as he curiously studied the remains of the old truck. His pale eyes then looked out into the shadows, "Wonder where our Russian friend as toddled of ta?"

As Joy Buzzer wandered about the yard he spun his cane about. There was a lot of metal, a lot of conductors and he could feel the energy surging through him. In order to regulate it, he had developed the habit of releasing some of it through the motion of his cane, but he held on to more than enough to light up a city block. Just like Mack, Joy Buzzer was drawn to the metal, but for far different reasons.

Strolling aside the giant man, Joy Buzzer felt safer than he had in a while but he wasn't about to throw caution to the wind. He kept his senses open and searched the dark corners for signs of movement, just in case there were more robotic things lurking about.

"So, d'ya think there are more o' those things?" he asked the mechanic, "I kinda got the feelin' that giant didn'a care too much 'bout what it destroyed, just that it could, if ya get me meaning. Sort a like it was making a point, but robots dun make points, people do."

As Jasper rambled on as was his usual custom, he strayed a ways from John, inspecting the wrecks and scraps that were organized in neat rows. It was when he rounded the corner of yet another lane of old military vehicles that he spied some interesting. "Hey, Mack!" he called.

It seemed that Jasper had found ground zero. There was a large gap in one of the rows, as if some titan had taken a bit out of it and the tell tale foot prints of the robot were evident even in the dim light.

Oscuro entered a long bank of shadows against the office building in the scrapyard, this time the masked man was traveling light, he moved swiftly through the shade appearing at the far end of it in an instant. He sprinted swiftly and silently to another long block of darkness and vanished into the inky black.

Oscuro was moving quickly through the rows of cars and other vehicles, he was covering a lot of ground with amazing speed and stealth. As the man in the black mask and urban military fatigues came close to where his robot had acquired it's hardware a few hours earlier he could hear some men speaking quietly.

Oscuro stayed hidden in the shadows that he had just traveled through, the villains meta powers allowed him to use shadow like a dimensional door, inside this doorway Oscuro was all but undetectable. Oscuro moved through the dark, slower now, he was close to Jasper and John now. He could make out their outlines in the darkness.

He crouched and listened to the two men, why were they here? Oscuro had come back to the scrapyard to determine if there was a better grade of hardware which to use for his robot, the test run had been a success in his mind and was eager to rebuild his machine. Oscuro watched the men, John walked slowly across a dim sliver of light between the rows of metal. Oscuro recognized the big man from the media coverage of his capture and escape from RAID custody.

Oscuro did not know the other man, he carried a cane and wore a dark hat, but Oscuro could gather that he too was a meta of some sort. Oscuro was as excited as kid on Christmas as he observed the two men walking through the rows, his violent and masochistic nature were getting the best of him as decided to attack the two men. Oscuro was eager to duke it out with the famous McManus, a giant of a man and a known kicker of asses , the masked man was also giddy at the thought of tangling with the mysterious man in the hat, who was he? And what were his gifts?

Oscuro moved through the shadows, faster now as he came within a few yards of Jasper. The villain sprang from the shadows at a full sprint, there was not many people as fast as Oscuro in the shadows or in the light. Oscuro launched himself at Jasper, hoping to surprise the hero as he slipped his arm around Jasper's neck from behind him.

"Looks like this be where that giant heap a garbage originated." Figured Jasper, scratching his temple with the end of his cane. He was even more confused now.

"Y'know, Mack. I kinda a expected to find some sort a hidden laboratory or something." Jasper said disappointedly, "Guess I've been readin' too many comic books.... arrrrgh!"

Out of no where a black clad arm slipped around his throat from behind and Jasper could feel the weight of a body press against his back. Instantly he resisted and grabbed hold of his attacker's wrist. Gripping the gloved hand he attempted to tear it away but his attacker seemed stronger than normal. Jasper, possessed of what was commonly referred to as 'meta-strength', should have been able to out muscle a man of his assailant's apparent size and weight but the hold continued tighten. That's when Jasper panicked.

Oscuro could feel a strange tingling sensation run across his flesh. It felt unmistakably like a static charge running across his clothing, then the feeling penetrated his body. The paralyzing grip of low voltage seized the masked man's muscles as Jasper released just enough volt-amps to start to cook his opponent. It was actually the natural way that his body disposed of his excess energy, a trait that prevented the mutant from having normal relationships until he learned to control it. Still, with adrenaline rushing through his body it required concentration to maintain. Too much, juice and he would arc, blasting his opponent free clear of the charge, albeit somewhat stunned. That wasn't the idea though. The game was to keep the attacker immobilized and take advantage of the giant bruiser next to him.

"If ya would be so kind, Mack." Wheezed Jasper, prompting the big man to put his fists to use.

John jumped a little as Oscuro seemed to just materialize behind Jasper, he popped into view from the darkness and immediately began to choke Jasper in a military neck hold. John could feel Jasper charging up, the air around the three of them became still, a subtle crackling hum could be heard.

Oscuro tensed up, his choke hold was weakening as Jasper ran a current through the masked man. Oscuro's mind was screaming at his arms to move and to release the Irishman but his arms were not responding.

"If ya would be so kind Mack." Jasper said through clenched teeth.

John took a step towards the two men, his metal fist was swinging like a wrecking ball. John had stepped to Jasper's side so that he could pop the masked villain without slugging his friend in the process. The punch landed smoothly into the center of Oscuro's black ski mask, the man snapped back, released Jasper and fell back into the dark patch of shadows. John moved swiftly into the dark area, ready to continue the match. The punch was like getting hit with an aluminum bat, and right in the kisser, usually a hit like this was all it took for your average mutt. John had a feeling that the man in the fatigues was down but not out.

John went to where the man should have landed but could not locate him, he seemed to have vanished in the darkness.

"What the hell!? I know I rang this guys bell, there is no way he just got up and...."

CLANG!
A long piece of an exhaust manifold swung at John from nowhere and blasted him upside the head. The big man shifted to the side from the blow, his massive leg keeping him from falling on his ass. A stout muffler at the end of the manifold acted like a giant hand, slapping the mechanic again.

"That's gonna cost you." The mechanic growled as the long piece of metal vanished into the dark.

Joy Buzzer fell to the ground, rolled and spun around in time to see his attacker vanish into shadow. "Heh, neat trick. Think maybe we're being attacked by Cirque de Soliel?" Quipped the Irishman, his voice still raspy from the hold.

That's when he saw a dark blob of shadow amass behind, John and a black clad figure emerged from it wielding of all things an exhaust manifold.

"Look out...."

WHAM!

Jasper's warning was too late and then the figure was gone again. The hit was hardly enough to seriously injure the mechanic, but it sure pissed him off.

"So that's how this bloke want's ta fight, hey? What's the matter, don't have the minerals to face us out right?" The electrical meta taunted as he rose to his feet his eyes darting about.

Joy Buzzer then spun his cane quickly and blue electrical charges flashed in the dark as he held it high above his head. "What say we fight in the light!".

Jasper looked over to John, "Watch yer eyes, Mack." he told him, then the mutant generated a massive charge of power producing a phenomena known as ball lightening at the end of his cane. The light was intense. A blinding cool white orb hung in the air like a micro sun above Jasper, hovering there as he pulled his cane away. Held in place from a magnetic field he was able to produce from all the scrap metal around them. Junk yards were like playgrounds for the electrical meta.

"Where are ya!" Shouted Joy Buzzer, "Com 'on out and show yourself!"

Oscuro was blinking from place to place in the darkness, as his powers allowed, as he traveled back and forth in the dark he carried the long piece of the exhaust system like a baseball bat. He swung it like a pro ball player hoping to connect with Jasper or John. He was preparing to swing again when Jasper lit the place up like midday.

Oscuro was crouched low in the blinding light, as the shadows shrank from the bright orb Oscuro traveled with them. When Oscuro was using his powers he seemed to blend with them, he could blend and travel at will, as long as the villain remained mentally alert and in good physical health he could slip away into the dark in an instant.

This did not mean that the meta was immune to all harm while cloaked, while most physical attacks did not seem to slow Oscuro down while he was cloaked, he was open to attacks of focused energy or other power while using his 'cloaking' powers. The trick was to catch the man at just the right time, and Oscuro, even without his meta abilities was in great physical shape and as fast as they come.

Jasper could not know how close the villain was, just beyond the edge of his crackling field of white light. Oscuro smiled at the beautiful display, the man was impressed by the power that Jasper had at his finger tips. He thought the Irishman was wasting his time playing hero, he should join the 'other' side and use his powers to wage war against meta goodie -goodies and the corrupt government. Oscuro's cause was something along the lines of this, that and creating chaos and making some serious cold, hard cash.

Oscuro could smell the electricity and the heat in the area all around them, the Irishman wasn't even breaking a sweat, he made it look so easy.

Over time, Jasper had learned how to conserve his energy, channeling the electricity around him without having to tax his body. It took focus, but despite his apparent lackadaisical nature, the electrical meta had worked hard to hone his abilities. He had to, for without control he would have perished a long time ago from his own power.

Jasper, moved slowly away from John, moving the big man to the fringe of the electrical orb's light radius, maximizing what he assumed was a safe zone between them. Of course, he had no idea, if this 'shadow-man' was effected by the light at all, it just seemed a sound theory.

'Where was he? How could he remain unseen and move so silently?', Jasper wondered, and where the hell was Fyedka? That kid was some kind of shadow master himself, they sure could use him.

Indeed, the young Russian would be an asset in the battle, but Jasper didn't realize that his bright light would only thwart any efforts he would attempt. Still, they could use him nonetheless. Their opponent not only seemed to be able melt in and out of shadow, but he was fast and strong, easily surpassing Jasper's own heightened attributes. He could strike at any moment, leaving little time for the two meta-heroes to react.

As Jasper's eyes searched the shadows of the old vehicles that surrounded them, he couldn't help but remember a story he had heard just the other day. Jimmy, a pawn shop owner that he occasionally dealt with had brother named Smith. A typical goon who had mentioned that he was coming into some big money making a simple delivery for some masked nut job. The guy didn't spook easily but he was creeped out by the way the guy moved, like he seemed to vanish momentarily when he stepped into the shadows. Smith had just thought it was his eyes playing tricks on him, but know Jasper suspected otherwise. This had to be the guy that Jimmy's brother was dealing with. Just how many guys wearing black masks who moved through shadows likes doors could there be?

Something caught, Jasper's eye! It appeared for a second as if the shadows in the peripheral vision of his left eye grew darker. It might have been just his imagination playing tricks on him, but Joy Buzzer wasn't taking any chances.

Jasper leaped to the side, back toward John spinning in the air. The bright orb moved with him, and as he turned pointed his cane down the alley of scrap metal as if it were a magic wand. Instantly, two heavy vehicles opposite one another on each side of the narrow lane began to vibrate. Faint blue bolts of electricity surged between the two metal heaps and there was the sound of twisting metal.

BOOM!

The two old vehicles slammed together, sealing off the lane as a powerful magnetic field literally pulled them toward one another with crushing force. For a moment, Jasper's eyes seemed to pulsate with a glow, and face looked strained. Sweat beaded his brow for the excursion of producing such a strong field, but Joy Buzzer was far from drained. He didn't for a moment believe he could be so lucky as to trap their attacker but he at least hoped that the example of his power would discourage their opponent. He had his doubts. Already, the electrical mutant was preparing to defend himself from another blind-siding attack.

A quiet rustling of leaves blew across the ground as spring’s first morning stretched a variety of crimson streaks across a landscape coming to life once again. Bug opened an eye and felt the frost bitten blades of grass pressing against his cheek. Ice glued the composting folliage to his cheek as he looked up and took in his surroundings. Blinking the sting out of his eyes he tried to shake the memories of how he got here back into his head, to no avail.

He stood on shaky limbs and felt the blood start to pump again, but there was little reason to rush, for he had no direction, no barrings and no idea where ‘here’ was. The landscape was long, and flat, something he had never seen here on Earth. All he had ever known was the cities, the darkness of the streets and the constant sounds associated with such places. He knew of this thing called “the country”, many times his best friend John had spoke of things like “sometimes I think it might be best to just buy a little place out in the country and leave the world to fall apart on it’s own” … this must be what he had been talking about.

It was bright, too bright, and there was no place to get into the shade and rest his eyes from the bright morning sun. Bug’s eyes had always been sensitive to light, it had to do with his origins, the planet he came from had a star only half the size of Earth’s, and eve after all these years he simply could not adjust. He blinked instinctually but no matter how many times he blinked the sun stayed as bright.

He flipped his over baggy sweatshirts hood up over his head, tucking and hiding his long tendrils as best he could and re-surveyed his surroundings. He knew the last direction that he and his friends had been heading, and he decided the best thing to do was start moving. The fields seemed to extend forever, but his friend John was all he cared about at this point, and if he had to walk for the rest of his life to find him again, that was what he would do.

Oscuro was getting bored hiding in the dark, he was like a child floating in the shallow end of a swimming pool with a inflatable ring at his waist, the shadows were like water to him he could drift with them if he wished or simply step away.

Jasper's abilities were making contact with the metal around Osuro, the meta was now manipulating the magnetic fields in the rows of junk cars. They shook and jumped at one another, what a show this Irishman was putting on!

Oscuro blinked through the dark and emerged from the border of shadow and into the light right in front of Jasper. Oscuro dropped his exhaust system club and clapped his black gloved hands together as if he was applauding Jasper.

"Good show, sir! You really got something there kid." Oscuro said matter of fact as if he was not just attacking the two heroes only moments before.

"What else can you do? Can you use the magnetic fields to hover or maybe fly?" Oscuro brought a gloved finger to his chin.

"I bet you could charge a large device with that handshake of yours." The masked man seemed almost giddy as he questioned the Irishman.

John watched in awe as Jasper's powers danced and moved and lit up the area close to them. He was dying for Oscuro to show himself and was very pleased when the slippery villain did just that.

"I'm gonna twist yer head off laughing boy!" John growled as he walked quickly towards the man in the fatigues.

John bent down a grabbed up a odd tire with the wheel still in it and tucked it under his arm. When the big man was a little closer to Oscuro he flung the thing like a giant discus, it sailed at the villain. Oscuro sidestepped the wheel with ease, but John had anticipated this. As the man in the black mask and goggles turned to miss the chunky tire John launched into the air, his mech leg let out a loud click/clang as the mechanic seemed to fly at Oscuro.

John landed right in front of the masked man, John brought his arm down on Oscuro and delicately palmed the villain's head in his large three-fingered mech hand.

"No more of yer crap nutcase, whattaya want?" John barked as he squeezed the man's noggin just a little bit.

Jasper's eyes narrowed as he regarded the masked man. He was hardly intimidated by his display but rather fascinated, so much so that the villain had the audacity to strike up a conversation in the middle of the fight! Still, it took Joy Buzzer by surprise and street wise crime didn't quite know how to react to the situation. He couldn't just light this man up like a christmas tree while he stood before him, seemingly prone to attack.

When the masked man commented on his handshake, Jasper mischievously extended his right hand. "The name's Joy Buzzer, why don't you try it out for yourself." he said smartly.

That's when a large tire came spinning toward the villain. He dodged it easily, and Jasper cautiously leapt back as well, but just as he planted his feet back on the ground, the big man propelled himself toward their opponent with incredible speed. He caught the masked man as if he were a pesky fly, holding his head tightly in his large mechanized hand.

"Well, well, now." Piped up the Irishman, "Not so spry now are we?"

Jasper spun his cane about menacingly, blue sparks flaring off of the twirling rod. "What's say we start with somethin' simple, now, like yer name? Then, we'll move on ta some more challengin' questions."

As Jasper moved closer to the captured villain he continued to maintain the bright orb that hovered above him. The hard part was conjuring the ball lightening, but once it was formed was quite easy for him to maintain. He didn't trust this meta's shadow ability and decided to err on the side of caution.

Bug spent several days moving, purely on instinct. He had taken in the subtle changes of the landscape, though much of it was as flat as it was days before. He had managed to find a wide, dirt road and made his way north until he found a second road that went east/west. He turned and headed west, “Denver” or some such place was the last he knew of, that was where he would start looking for John, however, he had no idea what or where a “Denver” was.

He walked for several days, finding water in large, silver, man-made ponds with huge spinning wheels attached to riggings high in the air. He had also encountered what appeared to be incredibly large dogs that would gently move out of his way and then stand and watch him as he drank. Food was tougher to come by, but occasionally he was finding little things here and there to sustain him, but what he was starting to really crave was one of those “steaks” John used to grill up for him, more than anything he was wishing he could get his hands on one of those.

Mid-day, Bug was walking along the long road that stretched infinitely to the west when he heard a rumbling behind him. A pick-up truck that was probably bright red under all the mud with a dented bumper and a cracked windshield pulled up and then stopped beside him. “Hey fella! Where you heading?” Bug looked over at the man sitting behind the steering wheel. He was very kind looking, probably in his mid-60’s and had one of the widest smiles Bug had ever seen.

“Denver.” Bug replied, trying to hide his tinny accent as best he could. “Denver? Why buddy, you’re a LONG way from Denver, how the hell’d you end up out here?” Bug shrugged his shoulders slightly and spoke, “I am not really sure. I woke up in a wide open space, with no knowledge as to how I got there.” The man looked at Bug with incredible curiosity and reached over, pulling the release on the door. “I’m Jude, my friends call me Rusty, hope on in, I’m heading back to my place, you can use the phone and get a hot meal.”

Bug smiled gently and accepted the man’s offer with a nod, climbing into the cab of the pick-up truck. As the bounced down the wash boarded road the man went on and on about how his family had been in Nebraska for five generations, and continually pointed at blocks of trees that frankly all looked the same, explaining about who lived there. Bug was grateful that the man left almost no room at talk back; frankly he wanted to just sit and be quiet. Finally they turned up a smaller road that lead about half a mile in to a small little white house, again, surrounded by trees. Bug was fascinated how the people who lived out here created small forests around their property. The trees were beautiful, and he did enjoy the view of them, but the fact that they would take so much effort to surround themselves with trees was beyond him. The truck squealed to a stop and Bug quickly got out, his dislike for motor vehicles was in no way improved after that rickety ride. Rusty hoped out and met a white haired lady, about his same age with a hug and kiss, Bug couldn’t help but smile a little, seeing there was still some measure of good in the world. He barely knew this man, but the look in her eyes when she saw him, even after just what Bug assumed was a day gave Bug cause to believe that she loved him.

“Hello there young man, my name is Gretchen, but you can just call me Ma’, everyone else around here does.” She smiled and extended a well worn hand, covered in the evidence of someone who worked hard their whole life. Bug took it and shoke it gently, standing silent. Ma’ looked at him with a smile and then back to Rusty, then back to Bug. “Do you have a name young fella?” Bug looked up at her, completely caught off guard; nobody had ever called him anything other than ‘Bug’, so he never really considered himself to be called anything else. In this situation he didn’t figure that ‘Bug’ was appropriate, as well as the fact that he knew his moniker was probably all over the news, he used the first name that came into his head, “Oh, I’m sorry, John, my name is John.” He smiled his soft, crooked, charismatic smile and waited to see what they would say next, completely unaccustomed to this level of slow pace.

“Well, it is a pleasure to meet you John, that is a very peculiar accent you have, you must be from Europe or somewhere’s.” Well I have supper ready so why not come on in, you can get cleaned up and have a bite.” Ma’ looked over at Rusty who smiled and nodded, waving his hand forward for Bug to lead the way. Bug hesitated at first, but took the first steps and opened the front door, walking into the small farm house. The aroma’s were splendid, breads like he used to smell on the streets of New York as he walked past the bakeries, meat like he used to smell at the Deli’s, it was a splendid mixture of wonderful food and he smiled slightly at the prospect of eating something.

“The bathroom’s right through that door son, feel free to use the soap and towels.” Bug turned and smiled once again to Ma’ as she was gesturing towards the bathroom. He looked up at her and spoke quietly, “Thank you for your kindness, I won’t ever forget.” She smiled warmly and Bug went into the bathroom. Closing the door behind him he removed his hood, his tendrils of hair sprang forth as if smothered and began to move around freely. He ran some water and washed his dirty face and hands. His thought ran wild, and he could not help but think that he hoped John would forgive him for borrowing his name.

Oscuro was unafraid as John palmed his head like a softball, he was looking at Jasper and still asking questions. Oscuro's black goggles and SWAT style tactical mask reveled no signs of emotion from the tall villain.

"You can call me Oscuro if you like, my mother called me Vincent but she doesn't call anymore, at least not since she died. The papers call me nasty names, they say I am a 'terrorist', their minds are too small to see that these labels are beneath me, I like to think of myself as an Independent contractor, a builder of ideas. I also build machines, intelligent machines and the bigger the better! I wish that the media would get a clue and start giving my due credit, the call me a criminal!- I'm a scientist...and an engineer."

Oscuro turned and looked at John, John still had a tight grip on him. The small motors and gears in John's hand clicked and whirred as the mechanic held the masked meta.

"Big man, you're John MacManus and from where I'm standing you seem to be a bit of an engineer yourself. Did you build this yourself? It's mechanical isn't it, it's not actually cybernetic, it is an old fashioned mechanical hand."

Oscuro lifted a hand to John's hand, he began to pat on the mech fist, he seemed genuinely interested in it.

"Back to you 'Joy Buzzer", I bet you focus your particular talents through that cane of yours, you have lightning in a bottle don't you. What's the cane made from? Is it gold? No, wait it's copper..."

Oscuro was nodding as he yammered on, he was enjoying his game of 20 questions. As he spoke he turned to face JB's crackling orb of bright light, it hovered in the air just above them like a miniature sun.

"Don't suppose you'd be a mensch and click the light off, I am a bit photosensitive."
Oscuro tapped the side of his chunky black welder's goggles as he asked this of JB.

For a moment, Jasper considered turning up the power on his floating globe of electrical energy when he learned that this masked man was sensitive to the light. He chose not to, however. This man who called himself, 'Oscuro' had not really done so much as to warrant torture. He reached up with his cane and touched the orb. The bright light instantly shrunk and a small spark clung to the end of the aluminum cane which the electrical meta kept as dim light source while they continued their interrogation.

"Keep in mind, this can go super nova in the blink of an eye." Jasper informed the 'villain'.

Jasper was impressed by this man's inquiring mind, and couldn't help but to answer one of his questions. "The cane is aluminum. Lighter and more durable." he automatically responded.

Oscuro had been accurate assuming that he used the cane to focus his powers, but he was hardly defenseless with out it. Like an artist relied on a paint brush, a conductive item allowed him to work more detail into his electrical medium. Of course if the masked man considered for a moment that separating Joy Buzzer from his cane would render him powerless, he would be sorely mistaken.

"Well thar, Mack," Jasper began, slapping the big mechanic on his beefy shoulder, "seems we've come across someone who chats more than I do." he quipped.

Jasper waved the glowing tip of his cane before Osuro's face then pulled it back. "Enough o'the chatter, 'Goggles'. If'n when by buildin' intelligent machines, you're sayin' that you had somethin' ta do with that behemoth we just tangled with, then I say we've got a beef with you. Perhap's me friend here should clamp his hand a little tighter round that big brain o'yours, What d'ya say ta that? Now fess up then. Was that robotic titan yer creation? If so, it's in our best interest to make sure you don't get a chance to reactivate that 'demolisher'."