Chapter 27: Angel

"Hm..."

Jay Pritchett stared at his flat-screen TV with a curious look. Apparently, there was some accident in New York involving some big wig executives. Stark Industries was the company name. Jay has heard of them in conversation with his younger employees. Always going on and on about the man's technological breakthroughs. Its CEO had quite a buzz around him due to being kidnapped around a month ago.

Of course, he was found some days later, not surprising considering the pull this guy must have. All the money he has doesn't hurt his chances, either. It seems like the guy couldn't stay out of trouble. This Stark guy had built a robotic prototype that malfunctioned and caused damage to something called an arc reactor. Jay didn't care too much about all the technobabble; his focus was on closets. Not technology. But it didn't stop his curiosity when two suits of high-tech armor were caught on video and was shared to the news and internet.

[ I know that it's confusing. It is one thing to question the official story, and another thing entirely to make wild accusations, or insinuate that I'm a superhero. ]

Jay shook his head as he saw Stark talk to the cameras. Boy, was this rich patsy full of himself.

[ I never said you were a superhero. ] One of the off-camera reporters said. Jay let out a chuckle.

[ Didn't? Well, good, because that would be outlandish and fantastic... I'm just not the hero type. Clearly. With this laundry list of character defects, all the mistakes I've made, largely public. ]

Stark started rambling. Jay couldn't believe that this man was hailed as a once-in-a-generation genius. This guy looked like he couldn't properly put together a shelf! A man beside Stark leaned in and whispered something into the billionaire's ear. Stark looked down and pulled up some card, most likely a script.

[ Yeah, okay. Yeah. The truth is... I am Iron Man. ]

This caused all the reporters in the room to erupt in chaos and excitement. If all the background yelling was anything to by. Shaking his head at whatever they were talking about, Jay turned off the TV and got up. Walking to the back of his house, he looked out the window and saw Manny doing burpees. The boy was covered in sweat and had a look of concentration.

"There you go, Manny." Jay said to no one.

Looking over to the other two occupants of his backyard. Jay saw his grandson, Luke, doing push-ups with a pained expression. Next to him was Harvey, a young man he had come to know very well. Harvey was walking around and giving tips to the two boys, helping them improve their forms and giving advice on how to do the exercises correctly.

"Ayy, are they still out there? It's been over an hour!" Jay turned to see his wife, Gloria, walk up to him with their son, Joe, in her arms.

"They'll be alright. After all, they asked for this."

Jay said as he remembered when Manny asked him if he, Luke, and Harvey could use his backyard to train. Jay, of course, was surprised at the request but agreed to it shortly. He was proud of Manny for taking the initiative to improve himself and learn new skills and disciplines. Of course, he knew where this new want to improve himself came from. It all stemmed from when Alex was kidnapped. The guilt of not being capable of defending himself and Alex must weigh heavy on his tiny shoulders.

"Give Manny more credit. He's hanging on even after two weeks of this. He's a tough kid." Jay said as they continued watching the three boys.

"I suppose... I still worry about him. He's my little boy."

"He won't be your little boy forever. Let's watch him and encourage him for now."

Gloria made a troubled face but nodded in the end. Wrapping an arm around her, they watched the boys move on to the next exercise. It was one of his personal favorites to watch, when the boys tried to land a hit on Harvey.

•••

"You two ready?"

Harvey asked as he looked at Manny and Luke. They were panting and covered in sweat. They slowly walked over to the large martial arts mat that Jay bought them. Harvey smiled as he stood in the middle of the mat and looked at his two friends, catching their breaths and making determined faces at him.

"Yes, sir!"

"Let's do this!"

"Begin!" Harvey yelled.

Luke and Manny looked at each other and nodded. Luke was the first to move as he dashed at him, throwing an unrefined punch at his face. Harvey grinned, raised his palm, and redirected the punch smoothly to the right. Luke looked shocked, not surprising since this was the first time he actively touched him in their spars. Since the first spar, all that Harvey has been doing was dodging and avoiding the boy's strikes and tackles.

"What!"

"Don't stop, Luke."

Harvey grabbed Luke's wrist, pulled his arm over his head, and spun him around. Harvey grinned and turned to Manny, who was trying to sneak up on him. Manny's eyes widened, and he brought his hands before him as Luke was pushed into him. Causing the boys to crash into each other.

"We're stepping it up today." Harvey said with one hand in his pocket. "I won't be dodging anymore. I'll stay in this spot and react to everything you throw at me."

Luke and Manny looked at him with unease. They then stepped back and whispered to each other. Agreeing to the plan, they stood beside each other and rushed him simultaneously. Smiling at the boy's plan to tag team him, Harvey slapped Manny's fist away and parried Luke's wild left hook. Harvey then spun to the ground and kicked both boy's legs out from under them.

"AGH! / WAH?"

"Not a bad plan. But make sure you don't stand too close to one another." Harvey said as Luke was the first to get up with an angry look.

"Grr... Harvey!"

"Oh? Are you approaching me alone, Luke? Instead of running away, you're coming right at me?" Harvey said with his arms held out in front of him. 

"I can't beat you without coming closer." Luke exclaimed as he walked forward.

"Oh, ho! Then come as close as you like!" Harvey said as he stood in his spot.

"Raaagh!" 

Luke roared as he spun his body and lifted his leg to perform a roundhouse kick. The kick was performed well; it contained enough rotation that its impact would be amplified by the added momentum of his whole body. Luke smiled as he saw his chance at victory when his foot was three feet away from Harvey's face. He was finally going to win!

"Eh?"

"Good roundhouse kick, Luke. Excellent rotation."

Harvey said as he looked down at Luke. He stepped slightly to the side and kicked Luke's other leg from under him. Looking down, he saw his friend's bewildered look; most likely, his brain hadn't caught up that he was on the ground. Suddenly, Luke's expression turned mischievous.

"Got you. NOW!"

"I'm on it!"

Harvey's eyes widened as he turned to the left and saw Manny's left fist mere inches from his face. Harvey smiled as he realized the boy's actual plans. It was clever and creative; he had to give them props for that. However...

"Too slow."

Harvey lifted his head slightly, and Manny's fist passed by his chin, missing him by half an inch. Grabbing hold of his friend's wrist, Harvey twisted his body and slammed Manny down—a textbook over-the-shoulder toss.

"Okay, that's enough for today. I'm impressed, you two, you got pretty close. I'll be sure to only hold back around ninety percent from now on instead of ninety-five."

"You hear that, Manny?! Ninety percent!"

"I know, right? We're getting there!"

Harvey smiled and held his hands out to his friends. Once they grabbed on, he pulled them up with ease. Harvey then guided them over to some chairs and a cooler. Grabbing two cool water bottles, he tossed them over to his friends. They caught them smoothly. It was a vast improvement, considering Manny stumbled and dropped the bottle the first time, and Luke got hit in the face.

The three friends talked about today's spar. What they got right and what they did wrong. It was part of their routine after they sparred with one another. Of course, once they were done drinking their water, they got up and prepared for the next exercise.

"Okay, it's time for our four-mile run."

"...Great."

"... Can't wait."

•••

"I was wondering when I would run into this guy."

Harvey said to himself as small flames danced away from his head; he was currently dressed as Vengeance. It was around two in the morning. Tonight, like every night, he was out on patrol when he found the street fight organizer, Tattoo, out and beating on one of his men. Looking around, he saw several criminals and thugs lying unconscious, beaten, and bloodied. Behind him, an old-worn, down apartment complex stood tall.

Looking into Tattoo's eyes, he saw that they were charred. Using the penance stare as the Ghost Rider increases its effects by a hundred. Due to Tattoo's evil acts, his soul was burned to nothing, forced to be forever punished. He might as well be dead, considering he would never move his body again without a soul.

"The rest can be punished without the Riders stare." 

Harvey looked over at the rest of the group. While sensing their souls, Harvey could tell that these people weren't good. But they also weren't evil. Burning their souls and sending them to an eternal damnation would be too extreme of a punishment.

"How kind of you."

Spinning around, Harvey swung his steel chain toward the direction of the voice. The figure yelped and did a backflip to avoid his strike. Dashing forward, Harvey spun his chain in a cyclone in an attempt to capture the intruder. The figure moved unnaturally in the air and avoided his chains.

"I see you're more of a shoot first. Ask questions later type of guy."

'For some reason, this person is bypassing our senses.' Zarathos uttered. 'Be on guard.'

"Who are you?"

Harvey demanded as he looked at the figure in the darkness. The figure laughed and walked towards him. Once in the light, Harvey got a good look at her. The young woman had platinum blonde hair. Her golden eyes twinkled with amusement. Her white denim jacket had buttons over her right pocket. The black shirt she wore underneath had a graphic design of two white wings. A white skirt rested above a pair of long black socks, which led to a couple of white Adidas.

"My name is-! Ah, what am I going by right now? I know! Just call me Amy!" Amy declared with a bright smile, her arms waving around animatedly.

"…why are you here, Amy?"

"You know it's rude if you don't introduce yourself, right?"

"…"

Harvey was perplexed. Just who was this girl?! How could she walk around this part of town with such a happy disposition? Add to the fact that he can't perceive her soul at all! What was going on?

"I'm Vengeance."

"…seriously?" Amy looked at him like he was stupid, Annoying Harvey. This girl was getting on his nerves. "…well I guess your parents wanted you to stand out."

"…what do you want?"

"Me? Nothing much. I just wanted to talk to you." Amy walked up to him with her arms behind her back. "I actually wanted to talk to you after Zadkiel was reduced to ash but you looked kinda busy."

Harvey's eyes widened as he heard what she said. Does she know who Zadkiel was? Does she even know his true identity as well?! If she was watching him like she said, she must have seen who he was with. Alex, Haley, Lily, Mitchell, and Cam could now be in danger because of him. 

"So just what-"

Amy was interrupted by Harvey as he dashed forward and pressed down with his forearm on her throat, the sudden tackle caused them to crash into the ground. He pressed down on her neck as he straddled her hips. Glaring down, Harvey looked at Amy's surprised face.

"Enough games. What are you? What do you want from me?"

"Hm. Usually, I don't let guys get on top of me without buying me dinner first. I'll give you a pass since you're doing me a favor here." Amy said as she grabbed his arm and lifted it off her neck.

Harvey was surprised at her strength; she effortlessly moved his arm. With a push, he was launched off her. Twisting himself in the air, Harvey landed in a crouch. Turning to the blonde girl, he saw her pat away any dirt or grime from when he slammed her down.

"Well, to answer your questions, I am the Archangel Chamuel! But you, my short-tempered friend, can call me Amy." Amy said with her hands on her hips. "I came here to find you! Something about you interests me, so I came all the way here to find out what that is!"

'Archangel Chamuel… I see.' Zarathos said. 

'You know her, Zarathos?' Harvey asked mentally.

'I do. This woman is an angel best known to represent Justice and Love.' Zarathos explained. 'No wonder we can't sense her. Our abilities rely on sensing the sins of those with souls. In her case; her angelic nature makes it inconceivable for her soul to retain any sins.'

'Making it impossible for us to detect her at all.' Harvey concluded.

"The angel of Justice and Love." Harvey said.

"Wow! You've heard of me!" Amy said excitedly as she got into his personal space. She then wrapped her arm around his shoulder and smiled. "So, Mr. Vengeance, what are you?"

'Can we trust her?' Harvey asked.

'… I'm not sure. From my past experiences with angels, she's definitely an oddball. See what she has to say, but proceed with caution.' Zarathos answered.

"…let's talk somewhere else."

"Ugh…"

Harvey and Amy turned around as they heard some of the downed men groan. 

"After I take care of these guys."

"Oh! I'll do it!"

Amy said as she let him go. She walked closer to the unconscious men and spread her arms. Opening her hands up to the sky, glowing white celestial swords manifested above each of the men. Bringing her arms down, the swords plunged into the men. Harvey was initially surprised at the action but saw the blades slowly disappear, leaving no injury on the downed men.

"That should do it. Everyone here will go to the police and confess every crime they've ever committed when they wake up!" Amy said as she twirled around and posed. "Impressed, Vengeance? Go on, shower me with praise."

"...nice work."

"Oh, you're too kind." Amy said with a smile as she rubbed her head sheepishly. "Hehe, you're making me blush!"

"…let's get going."

"Lead the way, partner!"

'She's annoying.' Zarathos said dryly.