I sat quietly in the living room of Valentine manor. Liza the maid was nice enough to give me a cup of tea while I waited for Gizmo. I didn't really drink tea but I didn't want to be rude. I got up and walked around staring at old photos of Gizmo and his family.

I never had a family portrait nor did I have a real family. Gizmo hated me for what he lost when I never really had anything. How could anyone hate someone that never had a chance to even have what you had? The question always got to me whenever someone brought up his mother and father. It was one of the reasons I left the city. Sometimes I wondered what if I never met Gizmo. Would his mother still be alive and would he be the man he was today?

It's all I ever wondered especially since he blamed a lot of his failures on me.  I was used to people leaving me and treating me as the bad person. I no longer cared about what they thought of me. Caring too much about others opinion only held me back so I stopped caring. After a while Gizmo finally entered the room. I noticed he had changed out of his clothes. He glanced at me and mumbled something under his breath.

"I reported what happened at the Ecstasy so the place is under investigation now." I nodded my head as I glanced out of the window. I hadn't been in this building in four long years ago. Things had changed so much in a short time.

"Well we have no idea where he will be next or when he will go through with his plan." I said as I took a sip of the tea I had. Gizmo sighed unhappily as he sat on a couch across from me. We were in a battle fighting blindly against something we had no idea about. We were fighting a war that we may have already lost.

"Well Alistair Knight might give us some clues since he owns the club. Other than that the task force has to search until we find him." He said as I was surprised that I now knew the Boss-man's real name.

Also, I hated the fact the Gizmo had this strange look in his eye. He was headed for a dark path but so was I.

"Before we find him He will have already went through with his plan." I said as I slowly sat down in the chair across from Gizmo.

He shook his head he stood to his feet and approach the window I had just walked away from.

"There is no we, John. You don't belong here and if you keep interfering with this then I will have to ask the task force to hunt you down as well." He said as he slowly turned toward me causing me to slowly rise to my feet. I sighed as I approached him and stood nose to nose with him.

"You talk as if you run things at the Decagon when you are nothing more than a lap dog that takes orders from others. I don't take orders from anyone especially you. Now this is my fight as well because Dr. Lee knows my family and he was the only one willing to shed light on who they were. With that being said I'm staying to figure out who I am." I sighed as I stepped away and left the room to leave the building.

I stopped when he called after me. He was staring out of his window and I could see Drex-corps in distance.

"You ever wish there was a way to go back in time to fix things?" He asked as he glanced at me but returned his attention to the sight he was staring at.

"Time is a delicate thing and no one should mess with it. The things that happened are all connected. Erasing one thing would ruin everything. At least that's what I believe." I said as I turned away and left the room.

"returned to the Bunker where everyone was arguing about what was going to happen now that Dr. Lee was in Darko city. They were all worried they would be captured again. I sighed as I approached everyone causing them to stop arguing and stare at me.

"Nothing will happen to you. Everyone needs to stay here for a while. Dr. Lee will go through with his plan soon enough and I will stop him." I said causing everyone to nod slowly.

"The big question is when will that happen and how long will we have to stay here?" Kira asked quietly causing me to glance at her.

"Well you said there will be a press conference at city hall soon. After today it will probably be soon when that occurs. When a press conference is held at city hall the streets around the area are blocked off for people to come and listen. Also, that means traffic will be hectic that day. It's the best time for an attack and making a statement. From what I have seen since I have been here is that Dr. Lee is trying to start a revolution." I said causing everyone to look at me confused.

No one knew how to feel about what Dr. Lee was trying to do. Many people saw him as a monster but Dr. Lee saw himself as a savior. He's not insane because is aware of his wrong doing and sometimes shows regret, but the way I see it is that he feels there's no point in stopping when he's in this deep.

"What kind of revolution is so important that he has to hurt tons of people?" Sean asked causing everyone to glance at him then glare at me. I sighed long and hard as I tried my best to understand it all as well.

"He believes superhumans shouldn't be feared because to him there is a threat far greater and I guess he thinks he is giving us the means to fight back." I said causing everyone to look at me confused. 

I shrugged as I entered my room and sat on the bed. I began tinkering with a communicator I was trying to make before I came to the city. After a while the door creaked open and Styles entered waving awkwardly.

"I don't mean to bother you but I just want to learn how to fight. I want to be able to help protect people." He said.

I stared at him for a long time wondering what  would be the right thing to say. I was no hero nor was I doing any of this to help others. I was in this only to find out who I really am.

"You should ask your brother, Styles.... He has the power of speed. Also, he protects people.... It was his job." I said slowly but Styles shook his head as he folded his arms across his chest.

"I want to learn from you. You might not see it but you are a leader....even if you don't want to be one we all depend on you."

I sighed when he said this. I didn't like people depending on me because if I fail then I'd be failing them. He sighed as he shifted impatiently as he waited for an answer.

"You want to protect people then you need to get your answers from your brother....I'll give you the tools you need to defend yourself but that's it."

Styles nodded as he stuck his hand out toward me so I gently took it in mine and gave it a shake.  I nodded as he stepped out of the room silently. I sighed deeply as I laid back and closed my eyes.

Flashback

"Boy you are not a hero! The people that make it in this world are survivors not heroes. All heroes end up dead."

I looked up at him as I sat silently and held on tightly to the girl I tried to save.  Her long black hair covered the ground and it was drenched in blood. Her clothes were soaked with blood as well and her face had a deep scar across her cheek. She was barely breathing but I knew she'd survive.

He killed the man that attacked her but the damage was done. Her wounds would heal but what happened to her would never be erased. I held her hand in mine gently wondering why the world was so cruel.

"John....what happened to her is not your fault. You are not obligated to protect anyone other than yourself. What happened to her is tragic but it's the world we live in. Now come before she wakes and the task force arrives." He said as he grabbed my arm and pulled me away from the girl.

Present

I felt a hand touch mine causing my eyes to flutter open. Standing over me was Jade who had a worried look on her face. I sat up looking at her confused as she sighed unhappily. "Kira's sister Karen snuck out a while ago."

I grunted angrily as I got up and took off my shirt and put on another one. I grabbed a hoodie and stepped past her. If I didn't find her quickly Dr. Lee or the task force would get to her in a matter of minutes. I should have expected this to happen sooner or later.

Nobody wants to be cooped up in a bunker for days without being able to go outside. I glanced at Kira who quickly marched over to me with an apologetic look on her face.

"Sorry this happened I didn't think my sister would leave."

I shrugged as I grabbed her arm and urged her to come with me. I had no choice but to get her help with finding this sister of hers. As we climbed out of the Bunker I turned to her slowly. It was dark and it was raining lightly so I decided to pull my hood over my head.

"Where would your sister go?" I asked as Kira looked down at the ground and thought for a long time.

"Maybe the mall, clothing store or a comics store."

I nodded as I signaled her to follow me. Finding Karen would probably be easy if she was at the comics' store. We walked for fifth-teen minutes before we saw a sign that said Chaotic Comics. I pushed the door open to hear a clanging sound as I entered. The woman at the desk waved with a welcoming smile as I nodded in her direction.

I analyzed the building trying to see how many people were inside. It was nine o' clock at night so it wasn't many. I counted about seven heads and I signaled for Kira to go on the other side. I silently walked down the aisles until I saw Karen sitting on the floor reading a graphic novel called "Lady Killer." I snorted as I stared at the cover. She looked up at me surprised. I reached out for the book which she reluctantly gave to me.

"Get two more books you want to read so we can leave."

She looked at me strangely before smiling and took a minute browsing through shelves of books. Finally, she came to me with a book titled "Goddess of dreams" and another called "A forbidden Love"

I glanced at her awkwardly as I slowly took the books from her. She smiled again as I headed to the counter and set them down. The woman scanned them and the price came up to twenty eight dollars. I sighed as I gave her thirty and turned away waiting for Kira and Karen to follow.

"Don't do that again Karen." Kira said angrily I glanced back to see Karen look down nervously.

I slowed down until they were beside me. Karen hadn't been able to speak much since Reaper Island so I figured her ability may have to do with her voice.

"Once this is over I am going to get you all out of this city for a while." I said silently.

For a moment no one said anything as we walked roaming the streets in search of the others.

"When will she know what her powers are?" Kira asked causing me to glance at her confused.

I scratched my head as I thought for a while wondering the same thing but slowly shrugged. She sighed slowly as we saw a task force patrol truck driving down the road. I grabbed the two of them and entered an alley.

I saw a task force truck across the street. Two people were being cuffed and collars were put around their necks. I shook my head realizing Kira and Karen needed to get out of here. I looked at them with a serious look on my face.

"The two of you need to get back to the bunker and stay put!" I ordered.

Without another word I started walking. I went out into the street where I'd be noticed by the task force. It only took a second before I saw Gizmo standing before me with a blaster aimed at me. Then Agent Raven stepped forward holding cuffs. I sighed as I slowly surrendered and waited for her to cuff me. I glared at him angrily as he smiled happily.

"My day keeps getting better."

He smiled as he escorted me to the truck and shoved me in. I looked at the two people next to me. The woman sighed as she looked at her hands which were wet from the rain. After a while the truck stopped and seconds later the door opened.

My eyes were greeted by bright lights. I could see a figure standing before me. He grabbed my arm and pulled me down. I stepped on the ground and looked up to see I was on the base where the Decagon was located.  I had never been inside the gates before and I was amazed to see all the soldiers running around. The base was huge and was located right outside of Darko city. The place was a city of its own but smaller. Gizmo appeared next to me and pushed me forward.

I looked back to see the other two being taken somewhere else. I turned and dropped my head in hoping Karen and Kira made it back safely. Then I heard this familiar voice in my head the moment I had that thought.

"You are not obligated to protect anyone other than yourself."

It was a cruel and selfish mindset that I hated living by. I entered the Decagon to see desk filled with men and women wearing black and silver camo uniforms. Gizmo pushed me down the hall to a door where he used a key card to open it.

The door opened what I saw on the other side was a horrible sight. People in cells with collars around their necks and they wore the same uniform. Many of them had a sad look on their face when they saw me. A young girl waved at me with a depressed look on her face as Gizmo dragged me into an interrogation room and shoved me in the chair.  He left the room slamming the door behind him. I knew this situation was only going to get worse before it got better...