John's eyes shot open as he sat up from his bed. He was drenched in sweat and breathed heavily. He looked around the room to see the lights were off. It was dark, but for some reason, he could see clearly. John scratched his head slightly confused. Was this another ability he possessed? He climbed out of bed, still feeling groggy. He stumbled around making his way to a door across the room. John got to the door and grabbed the handle. He pulled it open to see a fairly appealing bathroom. He saw a stand-in shower and beside it was a bathtub. The toilet was spotless as if it had never been used before. Slowly, he began to wonder where everything was connected to for the facility to be functional. 

He figured it didn't matter since now he had a place to stay for a while. For the past few years, he spent most of his time living in hotels and on the streets. This was the first he'd been able to rest in a comfortable bed. John brushed his teeth as he decided to shower after breakfast. He was wearing a pair of shorts and a long sleeve shirt. On John's feet were a pair of black and blue socks. He put on his slippers as he headed up the stairs. As he got to the top of the steps and got to the door he heard yelling. John became worried as he tore the door open and stepped into the hall. He heard yelling and sounds of explosions further down the hall. It was coming from an area he'd never been to, so he didn't know what to expect.  John sprinted down the hallway as the yelling continued. 

The size of the underground facility amazed him. He stopped running a door opened. Behind the door was another hallway where he saw Jazz. He sighed as he jogged over to him curious to see why he was standing by himself. Jazz appeared to be watching something going on below them. John realized the others were in a training room. Jazz stared at John with a serious look on his face.

"Good, you're up. Let's go." Jazz said as John reluctantly followed him further down the hall. They descended a flight of stairs as John wondered where they were going. Jazz opened a door in front of them to the area the others were training. John saw Rena training with Diane while Celina trained Celeste. Rena was holding knives as energy began to cover them. John folded his arms over his chest as he became intrigued. 

He wanted to see what exactly she could do with her powers. Rena charged at Diane as she threw the knives. Rena swung wildly as she tried to land a strike on Diane. The shurikens continued circle around Rena. John could tell she was mentally controlling them as they flew around the room. Diane was knocking them out of the air, but Rena continued her assault. He noticed the energy release the shuriken and mimic its form. A knife of energy appeared behind a real knife. Jazz appeared in front of Diane knocking the energy Knife away. Diane was covered in sweat as she breathed heavily.

John looked over to see Celeste holding out her arm as Celina held out her hands. A teal color source of energy surrounded Celina as she stared at Celeste. Celina had blocks floating in the air. She seemed to be trying hurdle them toward Celeste but they were being kept near her. Celina clearly had a stronger level of her power.

Celeste collapsed to the ground as the strange source of energy disappeared. Celina ran over to her appearing worried. John walked over to make sure she was alright. “I think that’s enough for today sis. Celina concluded.

"Alright, it's your turn to train, John." A voice said, causing John to look over at Diane. She had a frightening look on her face as a faint cloud of energy formed around her right arm. It turned into a sword as she glared at John.

"I have plans for today." John said nervously as Diane's facial expression changed. Now she seemed annoyed and furious by John's remark.

"You come at me now, or I'll simply kill you." Diane said with an evil tone John hadn't heard from her before. 

He stood up to his feet and stared at her confused. She lunged forward at an enhanced level of speed. John's eyes widened as he moved away. Diane crashed into the wall turning to face John. Her left leg pushed off the wall and propelled her forward. John moved as she sliced through air. Her eyes appearing bloodthirsty made John nervous. John felt the sweat in the palm of his hands.

"What the hell did I do now?" John questioned as Diane appeared beside him. 

His perception of everything heightened. He processed his surroundings faster. Able to predict her attack he countered. He jabbed her with the palm of his hand. Her eyes widened as she lost her balance and crashed to the ground. John stumbled away from her as he breathed heavily, as he stared at her annoyed.

"You have heightened perception…that’s cute." Diane said in an unflattering tone as she stood to her feet. 

Her right arm morphed again into a pulse canon causing John to sigh. He readied himself as he tried to figure out how to stop her this time. "I'm guessing that unusual arm and leg are the powers you received from the serum." John said staring at her arm but she shook her head slowly. John now felt confused wondering what exactly she could do.

"I've never shown anyone my real powers." She said as she lunged forward. 

Diane moved strangely as John's eyes moved rapidly to keep up with her movements. She leaped in the air releasing a flurry of energy pulses. John pushed off the ground moving to the right. A blur on his right caused him to turn to see her. Around her left hand was a faint cloud of energy. She barreled her fist into John's stomach. It was so explosive John went hurdling into a wall. He went through it causing rubble to fall on top of him. He winced in pain as he pushed the rubble off of him. He looked down to see his shirt had a hole in it, and a hole was in his stomach. The pain was excruciating but for some reason, he was still standing.

"Now...I'm pissed." He said snarling as he stepped forward while the ground beneath him shook. 

John braced himself for a charging attack. Diane appeared unimpressed by the fierce look on his face. He knew she wasn't expecting much from him. This made him angrier as he felt this power surging through his body. It relieved him that his powers worked on command now. He lunged forward, as this explosive force erupted from his body. He crashed into the ground as Diane evaded his attack. John turned as he moved faster toward her before leaping off the ground. 

He came spiraling down, crushing the earth beneath his feet. Once again Diane had managed to evade his attack. John took a deep breath as he went after her again.

"On your right weakling." The unfamiliar voice said in John's head.

Unsure of what the voice meant, John turned his head. He heard what sounded like a rocket. Then he noticed a blur appear next to him causing him to shift his movement. He managed to grab someone's hand. Jazz stood before him with a surprised look on his face. John roared as he used his finger to send Jazz hurdling away from him. John went back to pursuing Diane around the large training room. He saw Rena, Celeste, and Celina on the sidelines. Diane was now appearing to be worried as John came at her. 

His movements became uncanny as his speed picked up. A trail of mist followed John as he continued moving. John pushed off the ground and began to glide over the floor. His breathing slowed as his surroundings appeared to be slower. He stretched out his right hand to grab Diane as she tried to move again. It wasn't much effort for him, but he used his right leg to alter his trajectory. Diane was directly in front of him, and he grabbed her with his left hand. He pulled her close to him as he breathed heavily. John felt her shivering as she stared at him frightened.

"You need to work on control... you could have brought this entire place down." She said sounding nervous, as she gently pried John's hand off her. 

He backed away as he looked around the room, he saw the destruction he'd caused. He rubbed the back of his head nervously, as he started to feel guilty. John saw Jazz laying on the ground rubbing the back of his head. He walked over to Jazz who had an angry look on his face.

"I don't know how you managed to stop me because these shoes usually help me move faster." Jazz said as John held out his hand to help him up. Once Jazz was on his feet, John looked down at his stomach. The wound was healing, but at a slower rate. He could feel the pain slowly getting to him as it became harder to breathe.

"Why are we training?" John asked as he looked over at Diane. She still appeared to be reeling from John's frightening pursuit. He watched her arm revert back to normal as she looked over at him.

"If there's going to be an attack on a carnival, then everyone needs to be able to pitch in and help." Diane said as she walked away. 

Jazz Jabbed John in the side as he stepped past him. John wasn't sure what was wrong with Diane. She wanted him to fight back and he defended himself without having to fight. John started to feel as if he frightened everyone. This power he was starting to explore frightened him more than anything. John sighed as he decided to go back to his room. He had to go to Valentine manor to talk to Gizmo. If he could get him to cancel the carnival then maybe they could have more time to find Dante. 

John was now hungry after walking back to his room. He hadn't eaten before because he thought something had happened. Everyone seemed to have disappeared as John got to his door. John only heard silence and couldn't sense any movement. He headed down the steps to his room. John took no time to get into the shower. After the water was warm enough, he stepped inside. The steam fogged up the walls around John as he stood in silence. John didn't know how Gizmo would react to him showing up at his house again. He still remembered the day that he was asked to stay with them. 

Flashback 

John sat silently outside of an office at the child protective service facility. They were filing paperwork to have him sent to a foster home in Wakersfield. A small town that was three hours away from Darko city. This meant he'd never see the few friends he had ever again. His adoptive guardian had disappeared, and the house had burned down. Being alone never bothered John, and being abandoned wasn't new to him. John sat silently, as he heard footsteps approaching. He looked up to see a man named Mr. Valentine. The richest man alive as well as the most successful businessman in Darko city.

"Hello son, my name is Gizrin Valentine. I know you don't know me, but I was wondering if you'd like to stay with me." Mr. Valentine said as John stared at him silently. John didn't know how to answer his question. He didn't trust people especially the rich kind. The door to the office open as an older man emerged from the room. He stared down at John with a look of disgust. John looked down to see his clothes covered in ashes. His clothes were also burned from the fire he escaped.

"I hope you're not planning on trying to take this runt with you." He said as Mr. Valentine stood to his feet and towered over the man. The man stepped back nervously as Mr. Valentine tone glared at him.

"If he wishes... then yes I'll gladly take him with me.” Mr. Valentine said as the man nodded slowly as he opened the door to his office. Mr. Valentine looked down at John who still sat silently for a moment. Reluctantly, he nodded his head in agreement.

“Paperwork?” The man said with a nervous laugh as Mr. Valentine nodded and stepped inside the room. John realized his life was about to change again.

Present

John sighed as he turned off the shower. He stood silently for a moment before stepping out of the shower. All he had left of the Valentines were memories that he didn’t want to hold on to. John realized facing Gizmo was getting harder and harder.